Sometime in the mid-1940s, L. Ron Hubbard, the future Church of Scientology founder, met Jack Parsons, a charismatic Caltech rocket scientist and dedicated Satanist. Hubbard stayed at Parsons' chaotic Pasadena boarding house for a time, battling for the affections of his host's teenage mistress and dabbling in the black arts. Their encounter, according to legend, led to the birth of Hubbard's "billion-dollar empire," but the only thing it succeeds in giving birth to in Moonchild is a sustained atmosphere of unshakable tedium. The main problem is in the casting. Hubbard is supposed to be witty and entertaining, two qualities that are completely absent from Cantor's performance. Cantor all but screams his lines, and their sheer volume literally drowns out whatever nuance and complexity the play aims to possess. Co-stars Andrew Shulman and Heather Tom manage to shine through, but even they can't illuminate the very murky proceedings. —Rebecca Marx

• Where: Access Theater
• When: Sat, Aug 14 at 9:30 p.m.; Thu, Aug 19 at 3 p.m.; Sat, Aug 21 at noon; Thu, Aug 26 at 9:30 p.m.; Sat, Aug 28 at noon